House Resolution 35

A RESOLUTION COMMENDING THE LIFE AND ACCOMPLISHMENTS OF
PERCY LEE BREWER, SR., AND EXPRESSING DEEPEST SYMPATHY TO HIS FAMILY AND
FRIENDS UPON HIS PASSING.

WHEREAS, Percy L. Brewer, Sr., born
February 26, 1931, to the late John and Janice Brewer, Sr., departed this
earthly life on January 19, 2004, causing great sorrow and loss to his family
and friends; and

WHEREAS, a prominent leader and activist in
Tallahatchie County, Mississippi, during the Civil Rights Movement, Mr. Brewer,
who was also a longtime member of the NAACP, was devoted to his beliefs in
equality for all; and

WHEREAS, on August 19, 1964, Mr. Brewer,
along with his two brothers, Eugene and Jessie, were the first blacks to enter
the Tallahatchie County Courthouse to register to vote; and

WHEREAS, Mr. Brewer traveled to Washington,
D.C., in order to bring the Civil Rights Movement to Tallahatchie County, and
after returning, he, along with Gus McClinton, Jessie Thomas, Jessie Brewer and
Bessie Tyler were the first to register their children into a segregated school
under the Freedom of Choice Form; and

WHEREAS, Mr. Brewer's activism during the
Civil Rights Movement was imperative to Project Headstart being brought into
Tallahatchie County, working diligently along with other outstanding Civil
Rights activists such as Margaret Block, Solomon Gort, Fannie Lou Hamer,
Professor Gray, Jessie Brewer, Naomi Wiggins and Stokley Carmichael to name a
few; and

WHEREAS, living a life of remarkable
undertakings and even greater feats of success, Mr. Brewer's hope for an
equally unified nation and state paved the way for the future of Tallahatchie
County; and

WHEREAS, a devoted and faithful member of
the Old Bethel Missionary Baptist Church, Mr. Brewer was united in holy
matrimony to the former Alzea Lee McKinley on July 9, 1954, and to their union
17 children were born; and

WHEREAS, it is the policy of the House of
Representatives to recognize and commend excellence in the lives of such
outstanding individuals as Mr. Brewer, whose tireless devotion to the cause and
furtherance of the Civil Rights Movement were monumental in the advancement of
the rights of African Americans in Tallahatchie County:

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE
OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI, That we do hereby commend the
life and accomplishments of Percy Lee Brewer, Sr., and express our deepest
sympathy to his family and friends upon his passing.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That copies of this
resolution be furnished to Mr. Brewer's wife, Alzea Brewer, and to the members
of the Capitol Press Corps.